101-612: The Pavilion Arts Centre was opened in 1889 as the new Entertainment Stage theatre on St John's Road in Buxton , Derbyshire , England. It is part of the Pavilion Gardens complex of buildings in the town's central Conservation Area . It has a main 360-seat theatre, and since 2017 it has been the home of Buxton Cinema. The Pavilion Arts Centre is Buxton's second theatre, located behind the Buxton Opera House which
202-465: A University of Derby campus at the site of the former Devonshire Royal Hospital , as well as the Buxton & Leek College formed by the August 2012 merger of the university with Leek College. Secondary schools include Buxton Community School , at the former College Road site of Buxton College , and St. Thomas More Catholic School . Others include Buxton Junior School, St Anne's Catholic Primary,
303-417: A market right , which allowed it to host a regular market ; this distinguished it from a village or city . In Britain, small rural towns with a hinterland of villages are still commonly called market towns, as sometimes reflected in their names (e.g. Downham Market , Market Rasen , or Market Drayton ). Modern markets are often in special halls , but this is a relatively recent development. Historically
404-637: A Grade II* listed public park of Special Historic Interest. Milner's design was a development of Joseph Paxton 's landscape for the Serpentine Walks in the 1830s. The 122-room Palace Hotel , also designed by Currey and built in 1868, is a prominent feature of the Buxton skyline on the hill above the railway station. The town is overlooked by Grin Low hill, 1,441 feet (439 m) above sea level, and by Grinlow Tower (locally also called Solomon's Temple ),
505-537: A charity hospital for the "sick poor" by Henry Currey , architect to the 7th Duke of Devonshire's . Currey had previously worked on St Thomas' Hospital in London. It became known as the Devonshire Royal Hospital in 1934. Later phases of conversion after 1881 were by local architect Robert Rippon Duke , including his design for The Devonshire Dome as the world's largest unsupported dome , with
606-440: A community space on the upper floor. The oldest surviving structures date from the mid-17th century. In Scotland, borough markets were held weekly from an early stage. A King's market was held at Roxburgh on a specific day from about the year 1171; a Thursday market was held at Glasgow , a Saturday market at Arbroath , and a Sunday market at Brechin . In Scotland, market towns were often distinguished by their mercat cross :
707-514: A crossing-place on the River Thames up-river from Runnymede , where it formed an oxbow lake in the stream. Early patronage included Thomas Furnyvale, lord of Hallamshire , who established a Fair and Market in 1232. Travelers were able to meet and trade wares in relative safety for a week of "fayres" at a location inside the town walls. The reign of Henry III witnessed a spike in established market fairs. The defeat of de Montfort increased
808-528: A crossroads or close to a river ford , for example, Cowbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan. When local railway lines were first built, market towns were given priority to ease the transport of goods. For instance, in Calderdale , West Yorkshire , several market towns close together were designated to take advantage of the new trains. The designation of Halifax , Sowerby Bridge , Hebden Bridge , and Todmorden
909-641: A diameter of 144 feet (44 m) – larger than the Pantheon at 141 feet (43 m), St. Peter's Basilica at 138 feet (42 m) in Rome , and St Paul's Cathedral at 112 feet (34 m). The record was surpassed only by space frame domes such as the Georgia Dome (840 feet (260 m)). The building and its surrounding Victorian villas are now part of the University of Derby . Currey also designed
1010-564: A few times. Buxton have been competitors in the Conference League . Buxton Raceway was due to hold a floodlit 2019 BriSCA Formula 2 World Final. Buxton's football club, Buxton F.C. , plays at Silverlands and Buxton Cricket Club at the Park Road ground. Other team clubs are Buxton Rugby Union and Buxton Hockey Club. There are also four Hope Valley League football clubs: Buxton Town, Peak Dale and Buxton Christians play at
1111-488: A five-bay front with a Tuscan doorway. The Grade I listed Crescent was built in 1780–1784 for the 5th Duke of Devonshire, as part of his effort to turn Buxton into a fashionable spa town. Modelled on Bath's Royal Crescent , it was designed by architect John Carr , together with the neighbouring irregular octagon and colonnade of the Great Stables. These were completed in 1789, but in 1859 were largely converted to
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#17327878747021212-491: A full list, see this table at Danish Misplaced Pages ). The last town to gain market rights ( Danish : købstadsprivilegier ) was Skjern in 1958. At the municipal reform of 1970 , market towns were merged with neighboring parishes, and the market towns lost their special status and privileges, though many still advertise themselves using the moniker of købstad and hold public markets on their historic market squares . The medieval right to hold markets ( German : Marktrecht )
1313-559: A good deal is known about the economic value of markets in local economies, the cultural role of market-towns has received scant scholarly attention. In Denmark, the concept of the market town ( Danish : købstad ) emerged during the Iron Age. It is not known which was the first Danish market town, but Hedeby (part of modern-day Schleswig-Holstein ) and Ribe were among the first. As of 1801, there were 74 market towns in Denmark (for
1414-591: A group of villages or an earlier urban settlement in decline, or be created as a new urban centre. Frequently, they had limited privileges compared to free royal cities . Their long-lasting feudal subordination to landowners or the church is also a crucial difference. The successors of these settlements usually have a distinguishable townscape. The absence of fortification walls, sparsely populated agglomerations, and their tight bonds with agricultural life allowed these towns to remain more vertical compared to civitates. The street-level urban structure varies depending on
1515-455: A local shopfront such as a bakery or alehouse, while others were casual traders who set up a stall or carried their wares around in baskets on market days. Market trade supplied for the needs of local consumers whether they were visitors or local residents. Braudel and Reynold have made a systematic study of European market towns between the 13th and 15th century. Their investigation shows that in regional districts markets were held once or twice
1616-468: A market town at Bergen in the 11th century, and it soon became the residence of many wealthy families. Import and export was to be conducted only through market towns, to allow oversight of commerce and to simplify the imposition of excise taxes and customs duties . This practice served to encourage growth in areas which had strategic significance, providing a local economic base for the construction of fortifications and sufficient population to defend
1717-473: A number of market towns in Saxony throughout the 11th century and did much to develop peaceful markets by granting a special 'peace' to merchants and a special and permanent 'peace' to market-places. With the rise of the territories, the ability to designate market towns was passed to the princes and dukes, as the basis of German town law . The local ordinance status of a market town ( Marktgemeinde or Markt )
1818-604: A place where the right to hold a regular market or fair was granted by a ruling authority (either royal, noble, or ecclesiastical). As in the rest of the UK, the area in which the cross was situated was almost always central: either in a square; or in a broad, main street. Towns which still have regular markets include: Inverurie , St Andrews , Selkirk , Wigtown , Kelso , and Cupar . Not all still possess their mercat cross (market cross). Dutch painters of Antwerp took great interest in market places and market towns as subject matter from
1919-412: A relationship with customers and may have offered added value services, such as credit terms to reliable customers. The economy was characterised by local trading in which goods were traded across relatively short distances. Braudel reports that, in 1600, grain moved just 5–10 miles (8.0–16.1 km); cattle 40–70 miles (64–113 km); wool and woollen cloth 20–40 miles (32–64 km). However, following
2020-428: A small seaport or a market town prior to export. This encouraged local merchants to ensure trading went through them, which was so effective in limiting unsupervised sales ( smuggling ) that customs revenues increased from less than 30% of the total tax revenues in 1600 to more than 50% of the total taxes by 1700. Norwegian "market towns" died out and were replaced by free markets during the 19th century. After 1952, both
2121-701: A spa town for its geothermal spring, which gushes at a steady 28 °C. The spring waters are piped to St Ann's Well , a shrine since medieval times at the foot of The Slopes , opposite the Crescent and near the town centre. The well was called one of the Seven Wonders of the Peak by the philosopher Thomas Hobbes in his 1636 book De Mirabilibus Pecci: Being The Wonders of the Peak in Darby-shire. The Dukes of Devonshire became involved in 1780, when
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#17327878747022222-455: A successful market town attracted people, generated revenue and would pay for the town's defences. In around the 12th century, European kings began granting charters to villages allowing them to hold markets on specific days. Framlingham in Suffolk is a notable example of a market situated near a fortified building. Additionally, markets were located where transport was easiest, such as at
2323-628: A three-week theatre event from the end of July through the first half of August, was held in Buxton from 1994 to 2013; it moved to Harrogate in 2014 but returned to Buxton in 2023. The Opera House offers a year-long programme of drama, concerts, comedy and other events. In September 2010, the Paxton Suite in the Pavilion Gardens reopened as the Pavilion Arts Centre after a £2.5 million reconstruction. Located behind
2424-528: A two-storey granite, crooked, crenelated folly built in 1834 by Solomon Mycock to provide work for local unemployed, and restored in 1996 after lengthy closure. In the other direction, on Corbar Hill , 1,433 feet (437 m) above sea level, is the tall wooden Corbar Cross. Originally given to the Catholic Church by the Duke of Devonshire in 1950 to mark Holy Year, it was replaced in the 1980s. In 2010, during
2525-593: A visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the UK, it was cut down as a protest against a long history of child abuse at the Catholic St Williams School in Market Weighton , Yorkshire. The Buxton ecumenical group Churches Together brought in several benefactors to replace the cross with a smaller one in May 2011. Many pubs and inns in Buxton are listed buildings reflecting the historic character of
2626-419: A week while daily markets were common in larger cities. Over time, permanent shops began opening daily and gradually supplanted the periodic markets, while peddlers or itinerant sellers continued to fill in any gaps in distribution. The physical market was characterised by transactional exchange and bartering systems were commonplace. Shops had higher overhead costs, but were able to offer regular trading hours and
2727-613: Is a spa town in the Borough of High Peak , Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town , sited at some 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level. It lies close to Cheshire to the west and Staffordshire to the south, on the edge of the Peak District National Park . In 1974, the municipal borough merged with other nearby boroughs, including Glossop , to form
2828-614: Is a noted employer. Surrounded by the Peak District National Park, it offers a range of cultural events; tourism is a major industry, with over a million visitors to Buxton each year. Buxton is the main centre for overnight accommodation in the Peak District, with over 64 per cent of the park's visitor bed space. The Buxton Mineral Water Company, owned by Nestlé , extracts and bottles mineral waters. The Buxton Advertiser appears weekly. Potters of Buxton
2929-526: Is a popular local bouldering venue with many small outcrops giving problems mainly in the lower grades. These are described in the 2003 guidebook High over Buxton: A Boulderer's Guide . Hoffman Quarry at Harpur Hill , sitting prominently above Buxton, is a local venue for sport climbing . Youth groups include the Kaleidoscope Youth Theatre at the Pavilion Arts Centre, Buxton Squadron Air Cadets , Derbyshire Army Cadet Force and
3030-478: Is an example of this. A number of studies have pointed to the prevalence of the periodic market in medieval towns and rural areas due to the localised nature of the economy. The marketplace was the commonly accepted location for trade, social interaction, transfer of information and gossip. A broad range of retailers congregated in market towns – peddlers, retailers, hucksters, stallholders, merchants and other types of trader. Some were professional traders who occupied
3131-593: Is an opera and arts event held in July at the Opera House and other venues. It includes some literary events in the mornings, concerts and recitals in the afternoon, and operas, many rarely performed, in the evenings. The quality of the opera programme has improved in recent years, after decades when, according to critic Rupert Christiansen , the festival featured "work of such mediocre quality that I just longed for someone to put it out of its misery." Running alongside
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3232-672: Is in the western part of the Peak District, between the Lower Carboniferous limestone of the White Peak to the east and the Upper Carboniferous shale , sandstone and gritstone of the Dark Peak to the west. The early settlement (of which only the parish church of St Anne , built in 1625, remains) was largely made of limestone, while the present buildings of locally quarried sandstone, mostly date from
3333-756: Is no single register of modern entitlements to hold markets and fairs, although historical charters up to 1516 are listed in the Gazetteer of Markets and Fairs in England and Wales . William Stow's 1722 Remarks on London includes "A List of all the Market Towns in England and Wales; with the Days of the Week whereon kept". Market houses were a common feature across the island of Ireland . These often arcaded buildings performed marketplace functions, frequently with
3434-512: Is perpetuated through the law of Austria , the German state of Bavaria , and the Italian province of South Tyrol . Nevertheless, the title has no further legal significance, as it does not grant any privileges. In Hungarian, the word for market town "mezőváros" means literally "pasture town" and implies that it was unfortified town: they were architecturally distinguishable from other towns by
3535-620: Is reflected in the prefix Markt of the names of many towns in Austria and Germany , for example, Markt Berolzheim or Marktbergel . Other terms used for market towns were Flecken in northern Germany, or Freiheit and Wigbold in Westphalia . Market rights were designated as long ago as during the Carolingian Empire . Around 800, Charlemagne granted the title of a market town to Esslingen am Neckar . Conrad created
3636-652: Is the Buxton Festival Fringe, known as a warm-up for the Edinburgh Fringe . The Buxton Fringe features drama, music, dance, comedy, poetry, art exhibitions and films around the town. In 2018, 181 entrants signed up and comedy and theatre categories were at their largest. The week-long Four Four Time music festival in February brings a variety of rock, pop, folk, blues, jazz and world music . The International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival ,
3737-484: Is the highest market town in England. Buxton's elevation makes it cooler and wetter than surrounding towns, with a daytime temperature typically about 2 °C lower than Manchester. A Met Office weather station has collected climate data for the town since 1867, with digitised data from 1959 available online. In June 1975, the town suffered a freak snowstorm that stopped play during a cricket match. The many visitors to Buxton for its thermal waters, particularly in
3838-424: Is the town's oldest department store, founded in 1860. The Buxton lime industry has shaped the town's development and landscape since its 17th-century beginnings. Buxton Lime Firms (BLF) was formed by 13 quarry owners in 1891. BLF became part of Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) in 1926 and Buxton was the headquarters for I.C.I. Lime Division until the 1970s. Several limestone quarries lie close, including
3939-455: Is the town's principal theatre venue with 900 seats. The two theatres share a programme of events staged by the same organisation. In 2010 the Paxton Suite was redeveloped and opened as the Pavilion Arts Centre with a smaller Studio Theatre as well as the main theatre. The centre is one of the main venues for the annual Buxton Festival and for the town's Fringe Festival. It is the oldest surviving theatre in Buxton. The earliest theatre in Buxton
4040-607: The London Coliseum and the Hackney Empire . Opposite is an original Penfold octagonal post box. The opera house is attached to the Pavilion Gardens, Octagonal Hall (built in 1875) and the smaller Pavilion Arts Centre (previously The Hippodrome and the Playhouse Theatre. ). Buxton Pavilion Gardens , designed by Edward Milner , contain 93,000 m of gardens and ponds and were opened in 1871. These form
4141-667: The Royal Forest of the Peak on the Fairfield side of the River Wye. Monastic farms were set up in Fairfield in the 13th century and in the 14th; its royal ownership was reflected in the name of Kyngesbucstones . By 1460, Buxton's spring had been pronounced a holy one dedicated to St Anne, who was canonised in 1382. A chapel had appeared there by 1498. Built on the River Wye , and overlooked by Axe Edge Moor , Buxton became
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4242-749: The Sea Cadet Corps , in addition to units of the Scouts & Guide Association. Buxton has three Masonic Lodges and a Royal Arch Chapter, which meets at the Masonic Hall, George Street. Phoenix Lodge of Saint Ann No. 1235 was consecrated in 1865, Buxton Lodge No. 1688 in 1877, and High Peak Lodge No. 1952 in 1881. The Royal Arch Chapter is attached to Phoenix Lodge of Saint Ann, and bears the same name and number, it being consecrated in 1872. Regional TV news comes from Salford-based BBC North West and ITV Granada . Television signals are received from
4343-633: The University of Derby occupies historic premises. Buxton is twinned with Oignies in France and Bad Nauheim in Germany. The origins of the name are unclear. It may derive from the Old English for Buck Stone or for Rocking Stone . The town grew in importance in the late 18th century, when it was developed by the Dukes of Devonshire , with a resurgence a century later as Victorians were drawn to
4444-537: The William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire used profits from his copper mines to develop it as a spa in the style of Bath . Their ancestor Bess of Hardwick had brought one of her four husbands, the Earl of Shrewsbury , to "take the waters" at Buxton in 1569, shortly after he became the gaoler of Mary, Queen of Scots , and took Mary there in 1573. She called Buxton " La Fontagne de Bogsby ". She stayed at
4545-578: The Winter Hill and the local relay transmitters. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Derby on 96.0FM and Greatest Hits Radio Derbyshire (High Peak) (formerly High Peak Radio) on 106.4FM. The Buxton Advertiser is the town’s weekly local newspaper. Market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages ,
4646-510: The Yiddish term shtetl . Miasteczkos had a special administrative status other than that of town or city. From the time of the Norman conquest, the right to award a charter was generally seen to be a royal prerogative. However, the granting of charters was not systematically recorded until 1199. Once a charter was granted, it gave local lords the right to take tolls and also afforded
4747-431: The local government district and borough of High Peak. The town population was 22,115 at the 2011 Census. Sights include Poole's Cavern , a limestone cavern; St Ann's Well , fed by a geothermal spring bottled by Buxton Mineral Water Company; and many historic buildings, including John Carr's restored Buxton Crescent , Henry Currey 's Buxton Baths and Frank Matcham 's Buxton Opera House . The Devonshire Campus of
4848-452: The " Tunstead Superquarry ", the largest producer of high-purity industrial limestone in Europe, employing 400. The quarrying sector also provides jobs in limestone processing and distribution. Other industrial employers include the Health & Safety Laboratory , which engages in health and safety research and incident investigations and maintains over 350 staff locally. The town hosts
4949-659: The "small seaport" and the "market town" were relegated to simple town status. Miasteczko ( lit. ' small town ' ) was a historical type of urban settlement similar to a market town in the former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . After the partitions of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth at the end of the 18th-century, these settlements became widespread in the Austrian , German and Russian Empires. The vast majority of miasteczkos had significant or even predominant Jewish populations ; these are known in English under
5050-426: The 16th century. Pieter Aertsen was known as the "great painter of the market" Painters' interest in markets was due, at least in part, to the changing nature of the market system at that time. With the rise of the merchant guilds, the public began to distinguish between two types of merchant, the meerseniers which referred to local merchants including bakers, grocers, sellers of dairy products and stall-holders, and
5151-427: The 18th and 19th centuries, led to several new buildings to provide hospitality facilities. The Old Hall Hotel is one of the town's oldest buildings. It was owned by George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury , who with his wife, Bess of Hardwick, acted as the "gaolers" of Mary, Queen of Scots, who came to Buxton several times to take the waters, her final visit being in 1584. The present building dates from 1670, and has
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#17327878747025252-431: The 20th century, the special rights granted to market towns mostly involved a greater autonomy in fiscal matters and control over town planning, schooling and social care. Unlike rural municipalities, the market towns were not considered part of the counties . The last town to be granted market rights was Ólafsvík in 1983 and from that point there were 24 market towns until a municipal reform in 1986 essentially abolished
5353-497: The A53 Buxton to Leek road, is a motor sports circuit set up in 1974, hosting banger and stock car racing, as well as drifting events. It was home to the speedway team Buxton High Edge Hitmen in the mid-1990s before the team moved to a custom-built track to the north of the original one. The original track at High Edge Raceway was among the longest and trickiest in the UK. The new track is more conventional, and has been improved
5454-531: The Devils (1969). In 1979 it was renamed again as The Paxton Suite. The Pavilion Arts Centre is a Grade-II listed building. It was designed for the Buxton Gardens Company by local architect William Radford Bryden and was built of millstone grit stone by James Salt. The large shaped gables feature theatrical masks of comedy and tragedy. Bryden also designed the nearby Old Clubhouse (originally
5555-477: The Devonshire Hospital and Buxton Bath Charity, built in 1879 and accidentally lost for the latter part of the 20th century during construction work, before being found and restored in 1994. When the railways arrived in Buxton in 1863, Buxton railway station had been designed by Joseph Paxton , previously gardener and architect to William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire. Paxton also contributed
5656-516: The European age of discovery, goods were imported from afar – calico cloth from India, porcelain, silk and tea from China, spices from India and South-East Asia and tobacco, sugar, rum and coffee from the New World. The importance of local markets began to decline in the mid-16th century. Permanent shops which provided more stable trading hours began to supplant the periodic market. In addition,
5757-630: The Fairfield Centre and Blazing Rag at the Kents Bank Recreation Ground. Buxton has two 18-hole golf courses. Cavendish Golf Club ranked among the top 100 in England. It was designed by the renowned Alister MacKenzie and dates from 1925. At Fairfield is Buxton & High Peak Golf Club . Founded in 1887 on the site of Buxton Racecourse , it is the oldest in Derbyshire. The hillside round Solomon's Temple
5858-718: The First World War . Granville Military Hospital was set up at the Buxton Hydropathic Hotel, with the Palace Hotel annexed. The author Vera Brittain trained as a Voluntary Aid Detachment nurse at the Devonshire Hospital in 1915. The Royal Engineers based in Buxton used the Pavilion Gardens' lakes for training to build pontoon bridges. Prisoner of war camps at Ladmanlow and Peak Dale were established in 1917 to supply workers for
5959-588: The Grade II listed Buxton Baths , comprising the Natural Mineral Baths to the west of The Crescent and Buxton Thermal Baths to the east, which opened in 1854 on the site of the original Roman baths, together with the 1884 Pump Room opposite. The Thermal Baths, closed in 1963 and at risk of demolition, were restored and converted into a shopping arcade by conservation architects Derek Latham and Company. Architectural artist Brian Clarke contributed to
6060-490: The Opera House and a summer school at The Playhouse theatre. The Playhouse had its own resident reparatory company, which included Sir Nigel Hawthorne . The Literary and Dramatic Societies of local schools Buxton College and Cavendish Grammar School staged annual performances of either Shakespeare , such as Hamlet (1966), Coriolanus (1968) and Macbeth (1970), or modern works, such as Bertold Brecht 's Life of Galileo (1967) and Dylan Thomas 's The Doctor &
6161-574: The Opera House, it includes a 369-seat auditorium. The stage area can be converted into a separate 93-seat studio theatre. Buxton Museum and Art Gallery holds local artefacts, geological and archaeological samples (including the William Boyd Dawkins collection) and 19th and 20th-century paintings, with work by Brangwyn , Chagall , Chahine and their contemporaries. There are also displays by local and regional artists and other events. The Pavilion Gardens hold regular arts, crafts, antiques and jewellery fairs. Buxton's Well Dressing Festival in
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#17327878747026262-402: The Romans were in Buxton throughout their occupation of Britain. Batham Gate ("road to the bath town") is a Roman road from Templebrough Roman fort in South Yorkshire to Navio Roman Fort and on to Buxton. The name Buckestones was first recorded in the 12th century as part of the Peverel family's estate . From 1153 the town was within the Duchy of Lancaster's Crown estate, close to
6363-470: The Union Club), Solomon's Temple and the remodelling of the Thermal Baths in the 1880s. When Buxton Cinema opened in 2017, it marked the end of three decades for the town without a cinema and a return to the original cinema venue in the town. Buxton's first cinema was The Hippodrome in 1903. The Picture House was then built in 1916 on Spring Gardens (on the site of the demolished Victoria Arcade and Swedish Gymnasium). Buxton Opera House opened in 1903 and it
6464-549: The area. It also served to restrict Hanseatic League merchants from trading in areas other than those designated. Norway included a subordinate category to the market town, the "small seaport" ( Norwegian lossested or ladested ), which was a port or harbor with a monopoly to import and export goods and materials in both the port and a surrounding outlying district. Typically, these were locations for exporting timber, and importing grain and goods. Local farm goods and timber sales were all required to pass through merchants at either
6565-460: The building housed the Buxton Micrarium Exhibition, an interactive display with 50 remote-controlled microscopes. The building was refurbished as part of the National Lottery -funded Buxton Crescent and Thermal Spa re-development. Beside it, added in 1940, is St Ann's Well . In October 2020 Ensana reopened the Crescent as a 5-star spa hotel, after a 17-year refurbishment. Nearby stands the imposing monument to Samuel Turner (1805–1878), treasurer of
6666-463: The concept. Many of the existing market towns would continue to be named kaupstaður even after the term lost any administrative meaning. In Norway , the medieval market town ( Norwegian : kjøpstad and kaupstad from the Old Norse kaupstaðr ) was a town which had been granted commerce privileges by the king or other authorities. The citizens in the town had a monopoly over the purchase and sale of wares, and operation of other businesses, both in
6767-488: The day when the community congregated in town to attend church. Some of the more ancient markets appear to have been held in churchyards. At the time of the Norman conquest, the majority of the population made their living through agriculture and livestock farming. Most lived on their farms, situated outside towns, and the town itself supported a relatively small population of permanent residents. Farmers and their families brought their surplus produce to informal markets held on
6868-400: The earlier 20th century, Buxton had a resurgence in the 1950s and 1970s. The Playhouse Theatre kept a repertory company and pop concerts were held at the Octagon (including the Beatles in 1963). The Opera House re-opened in 1979 with the launch of the Buxton Festival, and the town was being used as a base for exploring the Peak District. Although outside the National Park boundary, Buxton
6969-420: The early market towns have continued operations into recent times. For instance, Northampton market received its first charter in 1189 and markets are still held in the square to this day. The National Market Traders Federation , situated in Barnsley , South Yorkshire , has around 32,000 members and close links with market traders' federations throughout Europe. According to the UK National Archives , there
7070-398: The era from which various parts of the city originate. Market towns were characterized as a transition between a village and a city, without a unified, definite city core. A high level of urban planning only marks an era starting from the 17th-18th centuries. This dating is partially related to the modernization and resettlement waves after the liberation of Ottoman Hungary . While Iceland
7171-487: The greatest: Harper Hill School with excellent teachers, Buxton Infant School, John Duncan School, Fairfield Infant & Nursery, Burbage Primary, Dove Holes CE Primary, Fairfield Endowed Junior, Peak Dale Primary, Leek College, Old Sams Farm Independent School, Hollinsclough CE Primary, Flash CE Primary, Earl Sterndale CE Primary, Peak Forest CE Primary and Combs Infant School. Above the town are two small speedway stadiums. Buxton Raceway (formerly High Edge Raceway), off
7272-417: The grounds of their church after worship. By the 13th century, however, a movement against Sunday markets gathered momentum, and the market gradually moved to a site in town's centre and was held on a weekday. By the 15th century, towns were legally prohibited from holding markets in church-yards. Archaeological evidence suggests that Colchester is England's oldest recorded market town, dating to at least
7373-413: The lack of town walls. Most market towns were chartered in the 14th and 15th centuries and typically developed around 13th-century villages that had preceded them. A boom in the raising of livestock may have been a trigger for the upsurge in the number of market towns during that period. Archaeological studies suggest that the ground plans of such market towns had multiple streets and could also emerge from
7474-484: The late 18th century. At the south edge of the town, the River Wye has carved an extensive limestone cavern known as Poole's Cavern . More than 330 yards (300 metres) of its chambers are open to the public. It contains Derbyshire's largest stalactite and some unique "poached egg" stalagmites . Its name recalls a local highwayman. Buxton has an oceanic climate with short, mild summers and long, cool winters. At about 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level, Buxton
7575-597: The layout of the Park Road circular estate. He is perhaps known best for his design of the Crystal Palace in London. Buxton Town Hall , designed by William Pollard, was completed in 1889. Buxton Opera House, designed by Frank Matcham in 1903, is the highest opera-house site in the country. Matcham, a theatre architect, was responsible for several London theatres, including the London Palladium ,
7676-404: The legal basis for defining a "town". For instance, Newport, Shropshire , is in the borough of Telford and Wrekin but is separate from Telford . In England, towns with such rights are usually distinguished with the additional status of borough . It is generally accepted that, in these cases, when a town was granted a market, it gained the additional autonomy conferred to separate towns. Many of
7777-519: The local town council . Failing that, the Crown can grant a licence. As the number of charters granted increased, competition between market towns also increased. In response to competitive pressures, towns invested in a reputation for quality produce, efficient market regulation and good amenities for visitors such as covered accommodation. By the thirteenth century, counties with important textile industries were investing in purpose built market halls for
7878-485: The local limestone quarries. RAF Harpur Hill became an underground bomb-storage facility during World War II and the country's largest munitions dump. It was also the base for the Peak District section of the RAF Mountain Rescue Service . Prisoner of war camps for Italians and Germans were set up on Lismore Road, off Macclesfield Road and at Dove Holes. After a decline as a spa resort in
7979-464: The market. If the travel time exceeded this standard, a new market town could be established in that locale. As a result of the limit, official market towns often petitioned the monarch to close down illegal markets in other towns. These distances are still law in England today. Other markets can be held, provided they are licensed by the holder of the Royal Charter, which tends currently to be
8080-455: The markets were open-air, held in what is usually called (regardless of its actual shape) the market square or market place , sometimes centred on a market cross ( mercat cross in Scotland). They were and are typically open one or two days a week. In the modern era, the rise of permanent retail establishments reduced the need for periodic markets. The primary purpose of a market town is
8181-491: The provision of goods and services to the surrounding locality. Although market towns were known in antiquity, their number increased rapidly from the 12th century. Market towns across Europe flourished with an improved economy, a more urbanised society and the widespread introduction of a cash-based economy. Domesday Book of 1086 lists 50 markets in England. Some 2,000 new markets were established between 1200 and 1349. The burgeoning of market towns occurred across Europe around
8282-513: The purchasing habits of the monks and other individuals in medieval England, suggests that consumers of the period were relatively discerning. Purchase decisions were based on purchase criteria such as consumers' perceptions of the range, quality, and price of goods. This informed decisions about where to make their purchases. As traditional market towns developed, they featured a wide main street or central market square . These provided room for people to set up stalls and booths on market days. Often
8383-533: The refurbishment; his scheme, designed in 1984 and completed in 1987, was for a landmark modern artwork, a barrel-vaulted modern stained glass ceiling to enclose the former baths — at the time the largest stained glass window in the British Isles — creating an atrial space for what became the Cavendish Arcade. Visitors could "take the waters" at The Pump Room until 1981. Between 1981 and 1995
8484-406: The reputed healing properties of its waters. The first inhabitants of Buxton made homes at Lismore Fields some 6,000 years ago. This Stone Age settlement, a Scheduled Monument , was rediscovered in 1984, with remains of a Mesolithic timber roundhouse and Neolithic longhouses. The Romans developed a settlement known as Aquae Arnemetiae ("Baths of the grove goddess"). Coins found show
8585-487: The rise of a merchant class led to the import and exports of a broad range of goods, contributing to a reduced reliance on local produce. At the centre of this new global mercantile trade was Antwerp , which by the mid-16th century, was the largest market town in Europe. A good number of local histories of individual market towns can be found. However, more general histories of the rise of market-towns across Europe are much more difficult to locate. Clark points out that while
8686-433: The sale of cloth. Specific market towns cultivated a reputation for high quality local goods. For example, London's Blackwell Hall became a centre for cloth, Bristol became associated with a particular type of cloth known as Bristol red , Stroud was known for producing fine woollen cloth, the town of Worsted became synonymous with a type of yarn; Banbury and Essex were strongly associated with cheeses. A study on
8787-574: The same time. Initially, market towns most often grew up close to fortified places, such as castles or monasteries, not only to enjoy their protection, but also because large manorial households and monasteries generated demand for goods and services. Historians term these early market towns "prescriptive market towns" in that they may not have enjoyed any official sanction such as a charter, but were accorded market town status through custom and practice if they had been in existence prior to 1199. From an early stage, kings and administrators understood that
8888-574: The sample testing of markets by Edward I the "lawgiver" , who summoned the Model Parliament in 1295 to perambulate the boundaries of forest and town. Market towns grew up at centres of local activity and were an important feature of rural life and also became important centres of social life, as some place names suggest: Market Drayton , Market Harborough , Market Rasen , Market Deeping , Market Weighton , Chipping Norton , Chipping Ongar , and Chipping Sodbury – chipping
8989-496: The site of the Old Hall Hotel , where Earl of Shrewsbury had built a lodging for visitors. According to John Jones of Derby, author of Buxtone's Bathes Benefyte (1572), the visitors to Shrewsbury's "goodly house" enjoyed a game of table bowls known as trou madame . The area features in the works of W. H. Auden , Jane Austen and Emily Brontë . Buxton's profile was boosted by a recommendation from Erasmus Darwin of
9090-466: The time of the Roman occupation of Britain's southern regions. Another ancient market town is Cirencester , which held a market in late Roman Britain. The term derived from markets and fairs first established in 13th century after the passage of Magna Carta , and the first laws towards a parlement . The Provisions of Oxford of 1258 were only possible because of the foundation of a town and university at
9191-428: The town and in the surrounding district. Norway developed market towns at a much later period than other parts of Europe. The reasons for this late development are complex but include the sparse population, lack of urbanisation, no real manufacturing industries and no cash economy. The first market town was created in 11th century Norway, to encourage businesses to concentrate around specific towns. King Olaf established
9292-747: The town erected a market cross in the centre of the town, to obtain God's blessing on the trade. Notable examples of market crosses in England are the Chichester Cross , Malmesbury Market Cross and Devizes, Wiltshire. Market towns often featured a market hall , as well, with administrative or civic quarters on the upper floor, above a covered trading area. Market towns with smaller status include Minchinhampton , Nailsworth , and Painswick near Stroud, Gloucestershire . A "market town" may or may not have rights concerning self-government that are usually
9393-408: The town some protection from rival markets. When a chartered market was granted for specific market days, a nearby rival market could not open on the same days. Across the boroughs of England, a network of chartered markets sprang up between the 12th and 16th centuries, giving consumers reasonable choice in the markets they preferred to patronise. Until about 1200, markets were often held on Sundays,
9494-656: The town, although many buildings have been demolished. Lost buildings of Buxton include grand spa hotels, the Midland Railway station, the Picture House cinema and Cavendish Girls' Grammar School. Cultural events include the annual Buxton Festival , festivals and performances at the Buxton Opera House, and shows running at other venues alongside them. Buxton Museum and Art Gallery offers year-round exhibitions. Buxton Festival, founded in 1979,
9595-420: The waters there and at Matlock , addressed to Josiah Wedgwood I. The Wedgwood family often visited Buxton and commended the area to their friends. Two of Charles Darwin 's half-cousins, Edward Levett Darwin and Reginald Darwin, settled there. The arrival of the railway in 1863 stimulated growth: the population of 1,800 in 1861 exceeded 6,000 by 1881. Buxton held a base for British and Canadian troops in
9696-633: The week up to the second Saturday in July has been running in its current form since 1840, to mark the provision of fresh water to the high point of the town's marketplace. As well as the dressing of the wells, it includes a carnival procession and a funfair on the marketplace. Well dressing is an ancient custom unique to the Peak District and Derbyshire and thought to date back to Roman and Celtic times, when communities would dress wells to give thanks for supplies of fresh water. Buxton's economy covers tourism, retail, quarrying, scientific research, light industry and mineral water bottling. The University of Derby
9797-411: Was converted to a cinema in 1927 which closed in 1976. In 1937 The Picture House was remodelled as the art deco Spa Cinema, running until its closure in the 1960s. It was then used as a bingo hall but reopened as a cinema in 1976 after the Opera House cinema had closed. It was closed in 1986 and demolished in 1987. The Job Centre building and a supermarket now stand on the site. Buxton Buxton
9898-967: Was demolished in 1854, performances were held variously at the Assembly Room, the Courthouse and the Independent Chapel. In 1889 the Entertainment Stage was opened by actor John Toole . It was also known as the New Theatre. When the Buxton Opera House theatre was opened in 1903, the New Theatre was modified to show silent movies and changed its name to the Hippodrome. In 1932 it reverted to a performance theatre and became The Playhouse. An annual festival ran from 1937 to 1942, in conjunction with Lilian Baylis 's theatre company from London's Old Vic Theatre , with plays at
9999-482: Was derived from a Saxon verb meaning "to buy". A major study carried out by the University of London found evidence for least 2,400 markets in English towns by 1516. The English system of charters established that a new market town could not be created within a certain travelling distance of an existing one. This limit was usually a day's worth of travelling (approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi)) to and from
10100-555: Was in a thatched house on Spring Gardens, which staged performances from c.1784 to c.1829 at the foot of Hardwick Street (replaced by Milligan's Drapery and Milliner's shop and where the Argos store is now). From 1830 to 1854 the theatre moved to the end of the Broad Walk, in the old hall stables opposite the Old Hall Hotel at the foot of Hall Bank. In 1833 the world-famous violinist Niccolo Paganini performed there. After this theatre
10201-405: Was under Danish rule, Danish merchants held a monopoly on trade with Iceland until 1786. With the abolishment of the trading monopoly, six market town ( Icelandic kaupstaður ) were founded around the country. All of them, except for Reykjavík , would lose their market rights in 1836. New market towns would be designated by acts from Alþingi in the 19th and 20th century. In the latter half of
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